What is Balayage?

B alayage has been around in the industry long before Instagram and Pinterest made it so desirable. Balayage started as a french coloring technique in the mid 70’s. The word means “sweeping” in French, which explains the motion used to apply the lightener or color to the hair. It is also known as a hair painting or freehand coloring. The Balayage technique made its way to the U.S. by the mid 90’s, and popularized by Sara Jessica Parker’s beloved character Carrie Bradshaw from Sex In The City. For the past couple decades the Balayage trend and technique have been slowly gaining momentum in our industry. Within the past 3 years, Balayage has exploded with social media! Now, stylists have more access to the education needed to produce these carefree and effortless looks.

Now let’s talk expectations!

With Balayage’s growing presence on social media, stylists have been inundated with photos from the internet by clients searching out these looks. In most cases these colors can be achieved in one sitting but with creative color services on the rise many women have multiple layers of color on their hair. This means that although you may want that perfectly sandy blonde Balayage with a chocolate brown smudged root, if you have previously colored hair, this goal needs to be done in stages.

“Balayage is meant to give you that undone, natural and low maintenance color”

What we at Pure Platinum a hair studio recommends is to book a consultation with your stylist to discuss your expectations, the reality of the process and last but not least a budget. Why we add your budget in to our consultation is because this technique in coloring is highly specialized and artistic as well as time consuming. The guests who are willing to invest in this service for their hair will tell you it was well worth it! Balayage is meant to give you that undone, natural and low maintenance color so your visits are more spread out to us. These qualities make Balayage so appealing to men and women with busy life styles, making Balayage here to stay.

Here are some examples of the beautiful work by our top Balayage artists.

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